WATER - Discussion

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A brief history of WATER
[spoiler]The Mermail archetype was first introduced in Abyss Rising, a set released on November 9th 2012. It saw immediate popularity among payers during the September 2012 format, seeing heavy representation among several YCS events in the format. Mermails brought 7 players into the top 32 at YCS Tacoma. In particular, Noberto Leon took the deck to 2nd place at YCS Tacoma 2012, narrowly losing to Michael Stibbins' Inzektor deck. On the other side of the TCG, the deck put 6 players into the top 32 at YCS Barcelona, unfortunately falling short once again as Federico Zoppinis Mermail deck was slaughtered by Jack Brunn's Dino Rabbit deck featuring Macro Cosmos.

The deck received more support that would change the way we built the deck. The release of TCG exclusive Mermail Abyssteus in Cozmo Blazer, released on January 25th 2013 was taken advantage of by Billy Brake, who went on to take a top 4 finish at YCS Miami was seen as a breakthrough in the design of the deck. Despite failing to win the event, he took out the favored Genex Undine engine and replaced it with Mermail Abyssteus and Mermail Abyssgunde. This gave the deck more power and allowed the deck to abuse powerful rank 7 monsters such as Mermail Abyssgaios or Number 11: Big Eye.

The newly christened Mono-Mermail deck became the standard list. YCS Bochum was the final YCS of the September 2012 format. The deck put four players into the top 32. Yet still, Mermail was unable to finish triumphant, as Alpay Engin's Wind Up deck won the event, defeating Stefano Memoli's Fire Fists in the finals. However, the March 2013 list would change things drastically.

Wind-Ups, widely considered the best deck of the past format, were severely weakened on the Forbdden/Limited list. Wind-Up Carrier Zenmaity was forbidden, while Wind-Up Magician was limited. The deck could no longer combo as consistently nor was it as powerful as before. Mermail's greatest rival was gone.

The first half of the March 2013 format was dominated by Mermail without a doubt. The deck finally won its first YCS in Texas on March 25th, piloted by Oscar Zelaya who used Royal Decree to give him an edge. YCS San Diego (April 6-8) was won by Angel Ascencio's Mermail deck, beating Mike Steinman's Fire Fist in the finals. Mermails success was not confined to just North America. YCS Lille (April 26-28) saw 18 Mermail players reach the top 32, where Long Dao was victorious with his 53 card decklist. Once again the deck emerged victorious on May 13th 2013 as Tyree Tinsley won YCS Meadowlands, the finals being a Mermail mirror match.

Lord of the Tachyon Galaxy, however, brought an end to Mermails winning streak. The Dragon Ruler archetype was fully introduced, and alongside the new Spellbook of Judgement, Mermail was shoved out. Even Evilswarm became more popular thanks to the OCG import Evilswarm Kerykeion. Despite support from Tidal, Dragon Ruler of Waterfalls, the TCG exclusive Mermail Abyssbaelan and Mermail Abyssocea, the deck failed to perform throughout the format. Only two Mermail players reached the top 64 bracket of the European Championshop 2013, while my research so far has found no Mermail players in the top 64 of the NAWCQ that year.

Despite the decks failings in the latter part of the format, the deck received its first direct hits in September 2013. Deep Sea Diva and Atlantean Dragoons were both limited to 1. Mermails initially saw success at YCS Toronto 2013 on September 1st, as Sorosh Saberian reached the top 4. However the deck failed to put any players into the top cut in a variety of events afterwards. 0 in the Top 16 of YCS San Mateo, 0 in the top 32 of YCS London on October 25-27, and 0 in YCS Turin from November 29-December 1st. Dragon Rulers continued to assert their dominance over the game with an iron fist.

January 2014 saw another hit to the deck, as Tidal, Dragon Ruler of Waterfalls was limited to 1. The deck could still summon it fairly consistently due to the rank 4 package of Mermail Abysspike and Mermail Abyssturge to make Lavalval Chain to access it from the deck, however. The first event of the format, YCS Atlanta, saw two Mermail players reach the top 32, Patrick Hoban and Bryan Tran. This was the first event to use the new sealed pack draft from the top 16 onwards. On February 8-9th 2014, Patrick Hoban also went on to win ARG Charlotte with his Mermail deck using Upstart Goblin, Reckless Greed, Raigeki Break and other uncommon card choices at the time. At YCS Chicago on March 23rd, the deck brought 5 players into the top 32.

The April 2014 format saw Mermail Abyssgunde limited to 1, making it more difficult to summon rank 4 and rank 7 monsters. The first American event of this format was YCS Las Vegas, where Mermail launched 9 players into the top 32. Clearly the deck was still playable at a high level, Geargia only narrowly beating it with 10 top 32 spots. The April 2014 format was blown wide open with the releases of Dragons of Legend on on April 25th, and Primal Origins on May 16th. Mermails would achieve their greatest success of all in the 2014 European Championship. German player Eugen Heidt won in Amsterdam, beating Swiss Marcel Burri and his Lightsworn Ruler deck in the finals. Mermails placed 2 players into the top 64 at the NAWCQ on July 11-13.

Following the release of The Duelist Alliance on August 15th, Mermails dropped off the radar, and have since. The deck was thought to have a somewhat favorable Shaddoll matchup by some, since Atlantean Marksman could destroy face down Shaddoll monsters without letting them flip, making access to their ace card Shaddoll Fusion more difficult. However, Shaddoll dominated the Duelist Alliance format. Since then, Mermail have had no top 32 spots at any YCS event.

The semi-limiting of Atlantean Dragoons in on the July 2015 ban list worked towards improving the deck, but it has still achieved very little since. However, the release of Breakers of Shadow on January 15th, 2016 is expected to finally change this...
[/spoiler]Why WATER, why now? What's changed?
[spoiler]

Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince is an OCG import in Breakers of Shadow, a set to be released on January 15th, 2016. Upon release in the OCG, the card singlehandedly revived WATER decks as a force to be reckoned with. Before discussing what the card offers, its effect is below:

WATER/Sea Serpent/800atk/0def/*
You can send 1 "Atlantean" monster from your Deck to your Graveyard, except "Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince"; add 1 "Atlantean" card from your Deck to your hand, except "Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince". If this card is sent to the Graveyard to activate a WATER monster's effect: Target 1 "Atlantean" monster in your Graveyard, except "Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince"; Special Summon it. You can only use each effect of "Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince" once per turn.

Ever since the release of The Duelist Alliance in August 2014, Mermail fell off the map. The new archetypes, Satellarknights, Burning Abyss and Shaddolls were more powerful for a variety of reasons. Satellarknights access to rank 4 cards made it far too easy for them to summon cards such as Abyss Dweller to lock the deck out of the game, while every Burning Abyss monster floated upon release. Destroying them with Atlantean Heavy Infantry only served to trigger their effects, attempting to clear their defenses with Atlantean Marksman was a flawed strategy because a great deal of their traps were chainable (see: Phoenix Wing Wind Blast, Karma Cut and Raigeki Break). As for Shaddolls, theirability to OTK was a hinderence to the WATER strategy because the deck played very little defense. The "dragon" version of the deck could summon Abyss Dweller easily. Mermails had to rely on OTK'ing each of these decks because their own cards did not float as effectively as those of the aformentioned decks. However, during this time Atlantean Dragoons was limited to one; setting up your hand to achieve this goal became more difficult, not to mention El Shaddoll Winda prevented the Mermail player from pushing for game, even if you could kill it the card limited the number of summons you could use in the process, often preventing you from putting lethal damage on the board. Other interactions, such as Dante, Traveller of the Burning Abyss attacking over both Mermail Abyssmegalo and Mermail Abyssteus didn't help, as did El Shaddoll Construct ability to break through many fields one could make after they inevitably failed to end the game during their turn. The likes of Nekroz, and their Nekroz of Valkyrus also prevented a player from attacking for game, and grinding against a deck like Nekroz was essentially impossible. Simply put, the deck fell off the map when a variety of interactions within the matchups across the board made the deck unable to compete.

How does Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince solve this?

Neptabyss helps address a variety of problems the deck once faced:

Raw power
Upon activating and resolving Neptabyss' effect, a player will gain a +2 in card advantage. Immediately this begins to solve the problem. Thanks to Atlantean Heavy Infantry and Atlantean Marksman, Neptabyss allows one to destroy virtually any card on the field. Several decks are projected to go first in this upcoming meta (for example Performapal/Performages and Monarchs as of January 29th). Immediately Neptabyss allows you to destroy threats such as a Cyber Dragon Infinity, Traptrix Rafflesia or any manner of other monsters summoned on turn 1. In addition, as Neptabyss sends to the graveyard as a cost the new Solemn Notice (also released in BOSH) will only stop "half" of the effect, you will still be able to trigger at least one Atlantean effect during any interaction between these two cards. As a result, Neptabyss allows you to push through all manner of defenses ranging from both monsters and traps.

Consistency
WATER has historically always been a combo deck, and any decent combo deck must have a way to retrieve its pieces from the deck quickly in order win the duel. When Atlantean Dragoons was limited this was of course more difficult, your prime searching card became harder to get to, and even when you did you could only resolve it once.

The modern day WATER deck suffers from none of these problems. These solutions have come from a variety of places...

1) The semi-limiting of Atlantean Dragoons on the July 2015 ban list: access to two copies of Atlantean Dragoons has a range of benefits. Being able to send it with the likes of Genex Undine in the past was an effective way to get your deck going however it also prevented problems. Going first, there used to be no good cards to discard for Mermail Abysspike and Mermail Abyssteus, since you would have no targets for the other two Atlanteans. Dragoons was therefore the prime candidate to discard, getting two searches would adjust your hand, often with Mermail Abyssgunde and Mermail Abyssmegalo. Outside of drawing Soul Charge (limited on the October 2015 list) you couldn't use it again. After using your initial combo, it became more difficult to gather the cards necessary to commit monsters to the field once again. While discarding the other two Atlanteans would serve the purpose of dealing with threats, it didn't increase your own overall card count. It is generally accepted that combo decks look to increase their own number of cards rather than decrease the opponents number of cards, as a combo deck needs multiple cards to function correctly. In the mid-late game after using Dragoons, players were previously unable to increase their own card count as efficiently without access to more copies of Atlantean Dragoons. More copies of such a vital card will only serve to achieve your goal of gathering the necessary cards to continue making high-impact plays.

2) The release of Elder Entity Norden: this card is important to talk about because it expands on the problem of Atlantean Dragoons being a "one and done" deal. With access to 3 copies of Instant Fusion at the time of writing, a player should be able to resolve Dragoons several times per game. After committing to your combos, Norden allows you to replenish resources by making a WATER rank 4 Xyz with the two and detaching Dragoons. Abyss Dweller gains at least some value across several matchups such as Burning Abyss and Monarchs (by preventing the graveyard effects of Idea the Heaven Squire, Eidos the Underworld Squire and The Prime Monarch), while Bahamut Shark's 2600 atk beats the 2400 threshold set by Mermail Abyssmegalo. Elder Entity Norden singlehandedly increases the ceiling of the deck by allowing you to immediately recover, and additionally set up your combo by getting extra searches along the way.

3) Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince being an improved version of Genex Undine: Neptabyss of course allows you to send Atlantean Dragoons straight from the deck. One of the flaws of Genex Undine in the past was the requirement to use at least one copy of Genex Controller in order to use it. The release of Leo, Keeper of the Scared Tree helped reduce this weakness by giving you a powerful synchro to make rather easily, but all things considered it was preferable not to draw the card. Neptabyss doesn't come with this caveat. the card adds consistency over Undine in this respect, but also is easier to access. 3 copies, alongside both Deep Sea Diva and One for One make your chances of acessing the card shoot up. While Undine has the advantage of being searchable by Mermail Abysspike, Neptabyss goes one step further and is a searcher for, and by, Atlantean Dragoons.
[/spoiler]The Mermails
[spoiler]Mermail Abyssleed

You can discard 3 other WATER monsters to the Graveyard; Special Summon this card from your hand. When you do: You can target 1 "Abyss-" Spell/Trap Card in your Graveyard; add that target to your hand. You can Tribute 1 other face-up Attack Position "Mermail" monster; send 1 random card from your opponent's hand to the Graveyard. You can only use this effect of "Mermail Abyssleed" once per turn.

Mermail Abyssleed saw play in the Mono-Mermail decks of old particularly due to its high attack point stat. Being able to take a card out of your opponents hand lets the player maintain control of the game. Unfortunately it is usually a dead draw, discarding three WATER monsters to summon this card is usually not worth it. 2700 atk is likely not enough to justify the cards use in the January format, as several Kozmo spaceships, as well as several Monarch cards are stronger than it. Relevant interactions regarding the 2700 atk stat include being able to beat over both a defence position Traptrix Raffleisa and Cyber Dragon Infinity (assuming it only has two materials, usually being Tellarknight Ptolemaeus and Cyber Dragon Nova).

Mermail Abyssmegalo

You can discard 2 other WATER monsters to the Graveyard; Special Summon this card from your hand. When you do: You can add 1 "Abyss-" Spell/Trap Card from your Deck to your hand. You can Tribute 1 other face-up Attack Position WATER monster; this card can make a second attack during each Battle Phase that turn.

Mermail Abyssmegalo has always been a mainstay in the deck. 2400 atk is acceptable generally (although it couldve been higher), but its ability to trigger your Atlanteans or Mermail Abyssgunde makes it a necessary combo piece. There are several neat tricks you can do with this card. For example, when discarding your WATER monsters, treat Atlantean Heavy Infantry as cl1 or cl2 to prevent your opponent from responding to it with cards such as Stardust Dragon, Cyber Dragon Infinity, Solemn Notice etc. This is because Mermail Abyssmegalo will be the last activation in the chain link.

Mermail Abyssteus[/i][/i]

You can discard 2 other WATER monsters to the Graveyard; Special Summon this card from your hand. When you do: You can add 1 "Abyss-" Spell/Trap Card from your Deck to your hand. You can Tribute 1 other face-up Attack Position WATER monster; this card can make a second attack during each Battle Phase that turn.

Mermail Abyssteusadds both power and consistency to the deck. Access to rank 7s became available more consistently upon release, and the ability to search for your low level Mermails lets you get to whatever card you want sooner. There isn't much to be said about this card, other than that it has some useful combos withMermail Abyssocea andMermail Abysshilde.

Mermail Abysspike

When this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can discard 1 WATER monster to the Graveyard; add 1 Level 3 WATER monster from your Deck to your hand. You can only use this effect of "Mermail Abysspike" once per turn.

When this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can discard 1 WATER monster to the Graveyard, then target 1 Level 3 or lower WATER monster in your Graveyard; add that target to your hand. You can only use the effect of "Mermail Abyssturge" once per turn.

Weaker in the early game toMermail Abysspike, but very useful for summoning rank 4's.

Mermail Abysslinde

If this card on the field is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 "Mermail" monster from your Deck, except "Mermail Abysslinde". You can only use the effect of "Mermail Abysslinde" once per turn.

Mermail Abysslindehas always added consistency to the deck. Lets you defend yourself with a weak hand, and of course is necessary to get maximum value out of Abyss-sphere. Her effect can be triggered in the end phase with Abyss-squall as well.

NOTE: In some situations, Mermail Abysslinde can make Mermails with trigger effects such as Mermail Abysspike and Mermail Abyssturge miss the timing on their effects if another cards is activated during the damage step. For example, if Mermail Abysslinde is destroyed by Brotherhood of the Fire Fist - Gorilla, and her effect is used to special summon Mermail Abysspike, Pike's effect will miss timing if the effect of Brotherhood of the Fire Fist - Gorilla was also activated. This is because the final thing to happen in the chain will be the resolution of Gorilla's effect to set a Fire Formation spell card from the deck.

Mermail Abyssgunde

If this card is discarded to the Graveyard: You can target 1 "Mermail" monster in your Graveyard, except "Mermail Abyssgunde"; Special Summon that target. You can only use the effect of "Mermail Abyssgunde" once per turn.

Allows you to summon both rank 4's and rank 7's consistently each turn. This card is the ultimate combo piece and allows you to build your boards, providing both offense or defence with the Xyz monsters summoned.NOTE: If discarding both an Atlantean and Mermail Abyssgunde, Gunde will be cl2. This means if you summon a monster with a trigger effect such as Mermail Abysspike or Mermail Abyssturge with her effect, it will miss timing. Summoning the Mermail with Gunde must be the last thing to resolve in the chain in order to trigger that Mermail's effect.Mermail Abyssocea

You can target 1 "Mermail" monster you control; Special Summon any number of Level 4 or lower "Mermail" monsters from your Deck whose combined Levels are less than or equal to the Level of that monster, then send that monster to the Graveyard. You can only use the effect of "Mermail Abyssocea" once per turn.

Mermail Abyssoceasaw some play in early 2014 thanks to the combo withMermail Abyssteusand Aqua Spirit­, but has since been phased out.NOTE: Mermail Abyssocea summons the monster first, the last thing to happen is sending the targeted card to the graveyard. Mermails with trigger effects such as Mermail Abysspike or Mermail Abyssturge will miss the timing on their effects when summoned by the effect of Mermail Abyssocea.Mermail Abyssdine

When this card is added from your Deck or Graveyard to your hand by a card effect: You can Special Summon this card from your hand. You must control a "Mermail" monster to activate and to resolve this effect. When this card is Special Summoned by the effect of a "Mermail" monster: You can target 1 Level 3 or lower "Mermail" monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon that target. You can only use 1 "Mermail Abyssdine" effect per turn, and only once that turn.

Mermail Abyssdine has some niche uses making it worth mentioning. In particular, summoning her off the effect of Mermail Abysslinde lets you revive back Linde giving you to level 3's to make an Xyz with. In the past, Dine was considered to make cards such as Wind-Up Zenmaines which would allow the player to deal with specific threats, Billy Brake in particular once mentioned the card in April 2013 as a way to counter the newly released Evilswarm Ophion as Atlantean Heavy Infantry was generally ran at one copy at the time, making the card slightly more of a threat. However, rank 3's may have been powercrept out of the game at this point, making Abyssdine's value more questionable.

Mermail Abysshilde

If this card is sent to the Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 "Mermail" monster from your hand, except "Mermail Abysshilde". You can only use the effect of "Mermail Abysshilde" once per turn.

Likewise withMermail Abyssocea this card saw some play in early 2014 but was phased out.

Mermail Abyssgaios

2 Level 7 WATER monsters
While this face-up card has Xyz Material, Level 5 or higher monsters cannot attack. Once per turn, during either player's turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; negate the effects of all face-up monsters your opponent currently controls that have less ATK than this card, until the end of the turn.

One of the best rank 7 cards out there. Provides defence from monster effects, this card is all-around fantastic and should be used to consolidate your field and ensure your opponent cannot get back into the game with their monster effects.

Mermail Abysstrite

3 Level 3 monsters
During either player's turn, when your opponent targets exactly 1 face-up "Mermail" monster you control for an attack, or with a Spell/Trap effect that could have targeted this card (except during the Damage Step): You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; that attack/effect now targets this card. When this card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard: You can target 1 "Mermail" monster in your Graveyard, except "Mermail Abysstrite"; Special Summon that target.

This card is generally summoned by the effect of Bahamut Shark. It acts as another floater to prevent you from field wipes. 2800 defence also comes in handy for stalling.
[/spoiler]The Atlanteans
[spoiler]Atlantean Dragoons

All Level 3 or lower Sea Serpent-Type monsters you control can attack your opponent directly. When this card is sent to the Graveyard to activate a WATER monster's effect: Add 1 Sea Serpent-Type monster from your Deck to your hand, except "Atlantean Dragoons".

Atlantean Dragoonssearches a great deal of the monsters in your deck. Semi-limited on the July 2016 ban list, this card is fantastic. Not much needs to be said. It helps set up all your moves, can be detached off Bahamut Shark, Abyss Dweller or Number 101: Silent Honor ARK to get more searches as well.

Atlantean Heavy Infantry

During your Main Phase, you can Normal Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Sea Serpent-Type monster in addition to your Normal Summon/Set. (You can only gain this effect once per turn.) When this card is sent to the Graveyard to activate a WATER monster's effect: Target 1 face-up card your opponent controls; destroy that target.

Atlantean Heavy Infantry had been overshadowed by its counterpart, Atlantean Marksman ever since its release. However, over the past year or so trap cards have been in a decline as combo decks have begun to rule the game. As a result, the ability to break up an opponents field, or prevent them from assembling one during their turn makes this card better now than ever before.

Atlantean Marksman

When this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: You can Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower "Atlantean" Sea Serpent-Type monster from your Deck, except "Atlantean Marksman". When this card is sent to the Graveyard to activate a WATER monster's effect: Target 1 Set card your opponent controls; destroy that target.

Atlantean Marksmanseems to be less important now than before. This card is no longer as effective with the decline of traps, however it may still be necessary to use simply to have more cards to discard for the your Mermail monsters.

Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince

You can send 1 "Atlantean" monster from your Deck to your Graveyard, except "Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince"; add 1 "Atlantean" card from your Deck to your hand, except "Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince". If this card is sent to the Graveyard to activate a WATER monster's effect: Target 1 "Atlantean" monster in your Graveyard, except "Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince"; Special Summon it. You can only use each effect of "Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince" once per turn.

The reason why this thread was made. Its effect is a +2 due to triggering the Atlantean monster you sent, and can give you access to both of your Atlantean Dragoons immediately. It was first released in the OCG set Crossover Souls on February 14th, 2015. The Atlantean deck quickly rose to power and became one of the most popular decks. It might have done even better in the OCG had it not been for the popularity of the HERO deck, even more consistent due to Elemental HERO Stratos being limited in their format. Neptabyss second effect is also effective for summoning rank 4s, as one can discard it for either Mermail Abysspike or Mermail Abyssturge, and use the Atlantean Dragoons summoned off of it for an Xyz summon. The card is easily accessible off of both Deep Sea Diva and One for One. Being at 3 upon release (of course), you can run a total of effectively 5 copies of this card in your deck, giving you at least a 50% chance of drawing access to it in a 40 card deck. This gets even better when you can search it off Atlantean Dragoons first, making the likelihood of accessing this card very high.

This was the card Water needed to become a force once again. There are not many better examples of powercreep than Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince.
[/spoiler]The Abyss- cards
[spoiler]Abyss-scale of the Kraken

Equip only to a "Mermail" monster. It gains 400 ATK. When a monster effect that was activated on your opponent's side of the field resolves, negate that effect, then send this card to the Graveyard.

Unfortunately, Kraken only negates monster effects on the field. The most important interaction for this card could've been negate Performage Damage Juggler to finish OTKs, but since that doesn't work this card might not be worth it.

Abyss-scale of the Mizuchi

Equip only to a "Mermail" monster. It gains 800 ATK. When a Spell effect that was activated on your opponent's side of the field resolves, negate that effect, then send this card to the Graveyard.

Abyss-scale of the Mizuchican be used to negate pendulum spells, however since it doesn't negate the activation they will return to the extra deck. This is a pity but the card is still useful.

Abyss-scale of Cetus

Equip only to a "Mermail" monster. It gains 800 ATK. When the effect of a Trap Card that was activated on your opponent's side of the field resolves, negate that effect, then send this card to the Graveyard.

Abyss-scale of Cetushas a great deal of potential, but traps are not predicted to be heavily played in the BOSH format, perhaps with the exception of the new Solemn Notice and Solemn Warning. This is not looking to be the right format for this card to shine.

Abyss-squall

Target 3 "Mermail" monsters in your Graveyard; Special Summon those targets in face-up Defense Position. Their effects are negated and they cannot declare an attack. Destroy them during the End Phase.

Abyss-squall was put on the map by Billy Brake in his top 4 deck from YCS Miami. It acts almost like a searchable Soul Charge and the card has a lot of potential for summoning rank 4's and/or rank 7's.

Abyss-sphere

Special Summon 1 "Mermail" monster from your Deck. Its effects are negated. You cannot activate any Spell Cards. When this card leaves the field, destroy that monster. Destroy this card during your opponent's next End Phase after activation.

Abyss-spherehad been a staple in Mermails ever since their release, allowing Mermail Abyssmegalo to search a defensive card to protect you from being OTKd. These days, one fears it is simply too slow to be played at more than one.
[/spoiler]Further Monster Support
[spoiler]Moulinglacia the Elemental Lord

Cannot be Normal Summoned/Set. Must be Special Summoned (from your hand) by having exactly 5 WATER monsters in your Graveyard, and cannot be Special Summoned by other ways. When this card is Special Summoned: Discard 2 random cards from your opponent's hand (or their entire hand, if less than 2). You can only use the effect of "Moulinglacia the Elemental Lord" once per turn. If this card leaves the field, skip the Battle Phase of your next turn.

This card can be set up off the back of a Deep Sea Diva. It fell out of favor for a while because it was difficult to summon, but Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince makes this card a lot easier to summon, and its effect is still extremely powerful.

Deep Sea Diva

When this card is Normal Summoned: You can Special Summon 1 Level 3 or lower Sea Serpent-Type monster from your Deck.

The card tutors Neptabyss from the deck, making it necessary to run for consistency. Also searchable off Atlantean Dragoons. Opening with this card gives you a first turn Moulinglacia.

Genex Undine

When this card is Normal Summoned: You can send 1 WATER monster from your Deck to the Graveyard; add 1 "Genex Controller" from your Deck to your hand.

The inferior version of Neptabyss. Players might still consider it as a way to get your hand set up asap, as well as being a good card to search off Mermail Abysspike if neither Mermail Abyssgunde nor Atlantean Marksman are appropriate for any reason.

Beatunaful Princess

When this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can banish this card; Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Fish-Type monster from your Deck, except "Beautunaful Princess". You can only use this effect of "Beautunaful Princess" once per turn.

Beautunaful Princess generally serves as a way to access either Mermail Abysspike or Mermail Abyssturge sooner. As a level one, it can be summoned using One for One, although it is more likely that we will be summoning Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince more often with it. Nevertheless, being able to special summon Mermail Abysspike allows you to adjust your hand sooner, with Atlantean Dragoons now semi-limited. The question is if we need additional copies of Pike, considering the TCG also has access to 3 copies of Mermail Abyssteus. In some ways Beautunaful Princess will serve to increase consistency but one also runs the risk of increasing the normal summon count rather heavily, with the card now competing for the normal summon alongside Deep Sea Diva, Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince (albeit we can gain value still by discarding this card for its effect), Mermail Abysspike, any copies of Genex Undine should you choose to run it etc.

Fishborg Archer

If this card is in your Graveyard and you control no monsters during either of your Main Phases: You can discard 1 WATER monster; Special Summon this card from your Graveyard, but destroy all monsters you control at the beginning of this turn's Battle Phase, except for WATER monsters. You can only use the effect of "Fishborg Archer" once per turn.

Fishborg Archer used to be a staple in many OCG lists of Mermails, albeit before Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince was released. As a level 3 tuner, the card gives you access to a variety of power synchro monsters including Dewloren, Tiger King of the Ice Barrier, Gungnir, Dragon of the Ice Barrier, Black Rose Dragon or Leo, the Keeper of the Sacred Tree. Being a WATER attribute monster you can discard for the cost of Pike and Teus without fear, while the card also has synergy with One for One. However, you will not usually be able to activate it's effect until the following turn after you send it to the graveyard as it usually only goes to the graveyard when you summon a monster in the first place. This might make the card too slow to keep up with the likes of Performapal/Performage, or indeed even the mirror match. In addition, the level 7 synchros it creates access might lose some strength due to the ability of decks nowadays to recover; simply summoning a Performapal Skullcrobat Joker or activating Performapal Monkeyboard will allow them to recover.

Maxx C

During either player's turn: You can send this card from your hand to the Graveyard; this turn, each time your opponent Special Summons a monster(s), immediately draw 1 card. You can only use 1 "Maxx "C"" per turn.

Maxx "C" can be effective against the pendulum decks or the mirror match to slow them down in the even that the opponent starts the duel. Also works to slow down Burning Abyss, who may or may not see more play following the release of the OCG import Fiendish Rhino Warrior in Breakers of Shadow.

Elder Entity Norden

1 Synchro or Xyz Monster + 1 Synchro or Xyz Monster
When this card is Special Summoned: You can target 1 Level 4 or lower monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon it, but its effects are negated, also banish it when this card leaves the field.

The OCG only had access to one copy of this card in their decklists, but at the time of writing the TCG players have access to 3. With Instant Fusion also being at 3, this card is fantastic for the deck. Norden being a WATER attribute lets you Xyz into cards like Bahamut Shark, and detaching Atlantean Dragoons (the prime card to summon with Elder Entity Norden) you can search whatever you want. It is not uncommon to resolve Dragoons four or five times a duel thanks to this card. It increases the ceiling of the deck by a good deal and has very few flaws at all.

Trishula, Dragon of the Ice Barrier

1 Tuner + 2 or more non-Tuner monsters
When this card is Synchro Summoned: You can banish up to 1 card each from your opponent's hand, field, and Graveyard. (The card in the hand is chosen at random.)

Trishula, Dragon of the Ice Barrier can be summoned using Deep Sea Diva, Atlantean Marksman and Atlantean Dragoons. This can be done by getting a direct attack in with Markman, or with Elder Entity Norden reviving either Marksman or Diva to provide the necessary levels. Since Trishula doesnt target, it can banish the Kozmo spaceships making it very useful.

Tatsunoko

1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters
If this Synchro Summoned monster would be used as a Synchro Material, 1 monster in your hand can be used as 1 of the other Synchro Materials. Unaffected by other monsters' effects.

Tatsunoko can be used to synchro ladder into higher synchro monsters such as Gungnir, Black Rose or Trishula. It is also a WATER monster, and one of the cards necessary to make a turn one Moulinglacia off the back of Deep Sea Diva.

Abyss Dweller

2 Level 4 monsters
While this card has an Xyz Material attached that was originally WATER, all WATER monsters you control gain 500 ATK. Once per turn, during either player's turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; any card effects that activate in your opponent's Graveyard cannot be activated this turn.

Excellent in the mirror match, a WATER attribute to trigger Atlantean Dragoons and being a rank 4 means it can be summoned off Norden. There's nothing not to like about this card, not to mention this deck can get its +500 atk boost effect easily.

Bahamut Shark

2 level 4 WATER monsters
Once per turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; Special Summon 1 Rank 3 or lower WATER Xyz Monster from your Extra Deck. This card cannot attack for the rest of this turn.

Bahamut Shark is used to summon Mermail Abysstrite and Cat Shark. Its a WATER attribute to trigger Dragoons, and can be summoned from Norden as well.

Number 101: Silent Honor ARK

2 Level 4 monsters
You can detach 2 Xyz Materials from this card, then target 1 Special Summoned monster your opponent controls in face-up Attack Position; attach it to this card as a face-up Xyz Material. You can only use this effect of "Number 101: Silent Honor ARK" once per turn. If this face-up card would be destroyed, you can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card instead.

This card has been phased out by most decks, however the ability to trigger Atlantean Dragoons makes Number 101: Silent Honor Ark worth thinking about.

Traptrix Rafflesia

2 Level 4 monsters
This card is unaffected by Trap effects while it has Xyz Material. "Traptrix" monsters you control, except "Traptrix Rafflesia", cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects. Your opponent cannot target "Traptrix" monsters you control, except "Traptrix Rafflesia", with card effects. Once per turn, during either player's turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card and send 1 "Hole" Normal Trap Card that meets its activation conditions from your Deck to the Graveyard; this effect becomes that Trap Card's effect when that card is activated.

Traptrix Rafflesia is a secret rare OCG import in Breakers of Shadow. It is one of the best defensive rank 4 Xyz monsters you can make, and Mermails can accommodate this card effectively by simply running one Bottomless Trap Hole and one Time-space Trap Hole. This card is great for protecting your field and is worth looking into for certain.[/spoiler]Further Spell Support
[spoiler]Instant Fusion

Pay 1000 LP; Special Summon 1 Level 5 or lower Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, but it cannot attack, also is destroyed during the End Phase. (This Special Summon is treated as a Fusion Summon.) You can only activate 1 "Instant Fusion" per turn.

WithElder Entity Nordenat 3 in the TCG, this card is amazing. I would write more but everything I said about Norden applies to this card. Unfortunately its vulnerable to Maxx "C" but that's no reason not to max out on this card.

Soul Charge

Target any number of monsters in your Graveyard; Special Summon them, and if you do, you lose 1000 Life Points for each monster Special Summoned by this effect. You cannot conduct your Battle Phase the turn you activate this card. You can only activate 1 "Soul Charge" per turn.

As with every deck, Soul Charges function is to help set up unbreakable fields. Thanks to defensive Xyz cards such as Mermail Abyssgaios, Traptrix Rafflesia and Number 106: Giant Hand (reprinted in March 2016 as a Gold rare), it is very easy to set up powerful fields and then end the game on your following turn.

One for One

Send 1 monster from your hand to the Graveyard; Special Summon 1 Level 1 monster from your hand or Deck.

One for One lets you get to your best monster,Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince sooner. There isn't much reason not to run it for this reason alone.

Twin Twisters

Discard 1 card, then target up to 2 Spell/Trap Cards on the field; destroy them.

Twin Twisters is a quick-play spell to be released in January's Breakers of Shadow. The card may serve several purposes for the deck. Destroying spell/trap cards helps you pave the way for your OTK's, but even then you don't necessarily have to end the game on the turn it's used. The new Solemn Notice from BOSH is expected to see a great deal of play. Solemn Notice is searchable by Guiding Ariadne, making an opponent more likely to have access to the card. Twin Twisters succeeds where Atlantean Marksman fails; Solemn Notice can stop your move dead if you rely on Atlantean Marksman to clear the backrow since it can be used to negate the card sending Marksman as a cost. Using Notice on Mermail Abysspike or Mermail Abyssteus when discarding Atlantean Marksman takes care of two cards at once. Twin Twisters bypasses this threat, while also conveniently destroying more than one spell/trap. In addition, Twin Twisters will trigger your own Mermail Abyssgunde, creating some synergy which might allow for more combos in the absence of cards such as Mermail Abysspike or Mermail Abyssteus. This, alongside Atlantean Heavy Infantry, can be used to attempt to lock down a Performapal/Performage player under their own Performapal Monkeyboard. Destroying the other card in their pendulum zone will leave them looking for another high scale Performapal. So far, lists tend to use no more than 3 high scale Performapals, if you can deal with those you could buy some time if they cannot pendulum summon. Unfortunately, a gameplan like this runs the risk of the opponent wriggling out of it by using either Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer or Wavering Eyes to clear their own Performapal Monkeyboard and begin pendulum summoning, so one must evaluate the situation carefully.

Mask Change II

Discard 1 card, then target 1 face-up monster you control that has a Level; send it to the Graveyard, and if you do, Special Summon 1 "Masked HERO" monster from your Extra Deck with the same Attribute as that monster, but with a higher Level.
(This Special Summon is treated as a Special Summon with "Mask Change".) You can only activate 1 "Mask Change 2" per turn.

Mask Change II can be used to summon Masked HERO Acid against decks playing heavy backrow. Unfortunately traps are in a decline so this might not be a format that suits the card. It can also be used to discard and trigger Mermail Abyssgunde, likewise with Twin Twisters.
[/spoiler]Further Trap Support
[spoiler]Anti-spell Fragrance

Both players must Set Spell Cards before activating them, and cannot activate them until their next turn.

Anti-spell Fragrance'smain purpose is to prevent pendulum decks from activating any cards in their pendulum zone. Without access to the pendulum summon, these decks can fall apart easily. The only problem with this card is that it is best going first, but Mermail seems to be better at going second, creating a conflict. Unanswered, this card is usually an auto-win.

Solemn Notice

When a monster(s) would be Special Summoned, OR a monster effect is activated: Pay 1500 LP; negate the Special Summon or activation, and if you do, destroy that card.

Solemn Notice is a secret rare counter trap released inBreakers of Shadow. It negates pendulum summons, sending their monsters to the graveyard rather than the extra deck making it extremely powerful. There is no matchup where this card wont put in work. It is also effective going second because it can destroy cards such as Cyber Dragon Infinity or Abyss Dweller which are likely to be summoned on the first turn, and without being responded to as it is spell speed 3.

Solemn Warning

When a monster(s) would be Summoned, OR when a Spell Card, Trap Card, or monster effect is activated that includes an effect that Special Summons a monster(s): Pay 2000 LP; negate the Summon or activation, and if you do, destroy that card.

Similar to Notice, Solemn Warningis more effective at stoppingPerformapal Skullcrobat Jokeras it sends it to the graveyard compared to Notice which will still let it go to the extra deck. Both cards are highly feared by pendulum decks.

Bottomless Trap Hole

When your opponent Summons a monster(s) with 1500 or more ATK: Destroy that monster(s) with 1500 or more ATK, and if you do, banish it.

Bottomless Trap Holewill usually banish all monsters summoned off a pendulum summon, making it effective for reducing the opponents resources.Usable via Traptrix Rafflesia.

Time-space Trap Hole

When your opponent Special Summons a monster(s) from the hand or Extra Deck: Shuffle that monster(s) into the Deck, then you lose 1000 LP for each returned monster.

Time-space Trap Holewill shuffle all pendulum summoned monsters into the deck. By not sending them to the extra deck, the opponent is forced to continue creating more fodder for their pendulum summons.
[/spoiler]Combos
[spoiler]First turnMoulinglacia:
(Requires: 1Deep Sea Diva)

1)Special summonMermail Abyssteus discardingany WATER monster. SearchMermail Abyssocea.
2) Mermail Abyssocea effect to summon Mermail Abysspike and a level 3 Mermail monster, sending Mermail Abyssteus to the graveyard.
3) Special summon Aqua Spirit.
4) Xyz for a Rank 3 and a Rank 4 monster. In the past this was usually Mechquipped Angineer and Bahamut Shark.

Please inform me of any relevant combos I have missed.
[/spoiler]Sample Decklists
[spoiler]If you would like your deck to be featured here please message me.

NB96

Marcus Wheeler - Top 32 YCS Sydney (January 16-17th, 2016)

Some OCG decklists to show the contrast between the two formats:

You can see the OCG deck use less Mermails than us. This is because Deep Sea Diva is at 3 while Mermail Abyssteus is limited to 1 in the OCG. As a result, their lists require more emphasis on the Atlantean aspect of the deck, while Mermail Abyssmegalo is used to create OTKs due to its effect allowing it to attack twice.

Their use of traps was likely a concession to the HERO matchup. Cards like Breakthrough Skill and Compulsory Evacuation Device stop Masked HERO Dark Law after it hits the field. This means that when Atlantean plays choose to go second blind, they have cards to stop the first turn Dark Law, since they can be drawn after it has initially been summoned.

They played more synchros in their extra deck because they have access to all three copies of Deep Sea Diva leaving them with no shortage of tuners to make use of. Players in the TCG do not currently have this luxury. We may need to focus more on rank 4's and [i]Mermail Abyssgaios.
[/spoiler]

7

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Also I let people vote for more than one in the poll so that they could express their disapproval of Master Destroyer (Wu-Tang) and still do a serious vote. I figure it's best not to have a unanimous decision on the Wu-Tang part since its just a joke lol

I had the poll on because there's various ways to make the deck since TCG has Teus at 3 and triple Gunde so you can go for Mermail heavy with Rank 4's and Rank 7's or Atlantean Heavy like Marcus Wheeler's list and the OCG lists as well so I wasn't certain what to call it.

The poll will probably be gone by tomorrow morning since I know people aren't a huge fan of having polls on threads.

Undine+double summon=diva this helps the deck go 1st even undine instant is good with hand traps because you dump dragoons make shark wall up get two searchs and just kill them next turn it's real neat

I wanted to test reasoning but never got around to it seems like it could also be good

2

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I was looking at your list and wondering why you didn't switch Virgil with Rafflesia and Vanity's Emptiness with Treacherous Trap Hole. I know Virgil gets you a draw upon death but with triple Instant Fusion I figure you can drop Rafflesia easily enough. Rafflesia gives you defense without saturating your deck with traps which are bad when your aim is to go second.

Then again maybe you just always want to make Bahamut Shark or Abyss Dweller with Instant Fusion to get the Dragoons search, however I still think Virgil is going to get absorbed by Infnity or targeted by Castel so you wont get the floating effect of Virgil often enough to anyway, possibly making Rafflesia a better pick in the extra?

I mentioned in the DN thread that I had tried Brilliant Fusion in this deck, my Light-attributes were just Ghost Ogres (didn't think Performages had enough synergy with the deck as a whole). Seraphinite branches out into a variety of plays - You can drop Diva to make a level 8 synchro (5 + 2 + 1) with Neptabyss, stuff like Scarlight Red Dragon Archfiend, Crimson Blader, Stardust Dragon also protects your field from the Atlanteans in the mirror. Ghost Ogre also goes towards those level 8 synchros (5 + 3), and you can also drop Leo in the mirror more easily if you run it. I thought the engine took up a lot of space so it might not be viable, but it's neat that Seraphinite being level 5 opens up some cool moves.

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Maybe it would be good to show to OTK combo with Prince and a Water in hand for people who don't know? Also anybody consider a smaller Mermail engine to fit an Artifact engine to help going first vs Pepe? I know in the OCG it had some success in Pepe format but was wondering how viable it would be since we only have one Diva? In theory preventing Pepe from making a huge board on their turn using the Artifacts/hand traps and then OTKing them once it comes back to you seems like a viable option to me

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I was looking at your list and wondering why you didn't switch Virgil with Rafflesia and Vanity's Emptiness with Treacherous Trap Hole. I know Virgil gets you a draw upon death but with triple Instant Fusion I figure you can drop Rafflesia easily enough. Rafflesia gives you defense without saturating your deck with traps which are bad when your aim is to go second.

Then again maybe you just always want to make Bahamut Shark or Abyss Dweller with Instant Fusion to get the Dragoons search, however I still think Virgil is going to get absorbed by Infnity or targeted by Castel so you wont get the floating effect of Virgil often enough to anyway, possibly making Rafflesia a better pick in the extra?

I mentioned in the DN thread that I had tried Brilliant Fusion in this deck, my Light-attributes were just Ghost Ogres (didn't think Performages had enough synergy with the deck as a whole). Seraphinite branches out into a variety of plays - You can drop Diva to make a level 8 synchro (5 + 2 + 1) with Neptabyss, stuff like Scarlight Red Dragon Archfiend, Crimson Blader, Stardust Dragon also protects your field from the Atlanteans in the mirror. Ghost Ogre also goes towards those level 8 synchros (5 + 3), and you can also drop Leo in the mirror more easily if you run it. I thought the engine took up a lot of space so it might not be viable, but it's neat that Seraphinite being level 5 opens up some cool moves.

They are going to use that removal on glacia first and I tested raf it just wasnt very good TTH was ok tho when I drew it haha and yeah I always just wanted the goons search also during the event I never made shark ever

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Maybe it would be good to show to OTK combo with Prince and a Water in hand for people who don't know? Also anybody consider a smaller Mermail engine to fit an Artifact engine to help going first vs Pepe? I know in the OCG it had some success in Pepe format but was wondering how viable it would be since we only have one Diva? In theory preventing Pepe from making a huge board on their turn using the Artifacts/hand traps and then OTKing them once it comes back to you seems like a viable option to me

Added the Neptabyss OTK.

Also the Artifact part is interesting but the problem is that they shine going first, whereas the WATER deck as a whole is better off going second. You create a paradox in your deck building which probably only harms you in the long run. You would also have very little room for hand traps.

Hand traps are probably the better way to go because they work going second so it fits in line more with the strategy of the deck. Playing Artifacts would mean that an entire engine in your deck gets weaker regardless of whether or not go first or second - Artifacts work well going first, WATER prefers to go second.

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Mermail Abyssmegalo has always been a mainstay in the deck. 2400 atk is acceptable generally (although it couldve been higher), but its ability to trigger your Atlanteans or Mermail Abyssgunde makes it a necessary combo piece. There are several neat tricks you can do with this card. For example, if you discard two Atlanteans, treat Atlantean Heavy Infantry as cl2 to prevent your opponent from responding to it with cards such as Stardust Dragon, Cyber Dragon Infinity, Solemn Notice etc.

You only need to discard 1 Atlantean, and Megalo will be CL2 (or 3 if you discarded 2 atlanteans) which "blocks" infinity, etc.

on gunde:

Allows you to summon both rank 4's and rank 7's consistently each turn. This card is the ultimate combo piece and allows you to build your boards, providing both offense or defence with the Xyz monsters summoned.

NOTE: If discarding both an Atlantean and Mermail Abyssgunde, Gunde will be cl2. This means if you summon a monster with a trigger effect such as Mermail Abysspike or Mermail Abyssturge with her effect, it will miss timing unless you choose not to activate Mermail Abyssmegalo's trigger effect to search.

It'll miss timing unless you don't activate the Atlantean (but they're mandatory so they have to activate). Megalo being CL3 doesn't affect pike etc, the important thing is that they're summoned at CL2 - in the same way, YZ mons miss the timing if you TT at CL2.

[/spoiler]

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Mermail Abyssmegalo has always been a mainstay in the deck. 2400 atk is acceptable generally (although it couldve been higher), but its ability to trigger your Atlanteans or Mermail Abyssgunde makes it a necessary combo piece. There are several neat tricks you can do with this card. For example, if you discard two Atlanteans, treat Atlantean Heavy Infantry as cl2 to prevent your opponent from responding to it with cards such as Stardust Dragon, Cyber Dragon Infinity, Solemn Notice etc.

You only need to discard 1 Atlantean, and Megalo will be CL2 (or 3 if you discarded 2 atlanteans) which "blocks" infinity, etc.

on gunde:

Allows you to summon both rank 4's and rank 7's consistently each turn. This card is the ultimate combo piece and allows you to build your boards, providing both offense or defence with the Xyz monsters summoned.

NOTE: If discarding both an Atlantean and Mermail Abyssgunde, Gunde will be cl2. This means if you summon a monster with a trigger effect such as Mermail Abysspike or Mermail Abyssturge with her effect, it will miss timing unless you choose not to activate Mermail Abyssmegalo's trigger effect to search.

It'll miss timing unless you don't activate the Atlantean (but they're mandatory so they have to activate). Megalo being CL3 doesn't affect pike etc, the important thing is that they're summoned at CL2 - in the same way, YZ mons miss the timing if you TT at CL2.
[/spoiler]

You're right I think I got mixed up when writing it out. I'll fix it in a moment.

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Idk if you would consider all of these "viable" but it's worth a try. I like the combo with steam synchron though because if you open that with a vanity it's basically murder she wrote. I'm currently working on a build that somewhat mimics the OCG by reducing my mermail engine.

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One of the things I'd like to point out now that the format is a bit more defined, @marcuthekid congratz on your top BTW.

Double dweller in testing has been very clutch tbh, against most meta decks its still a blow out and the 500atk increase helps us beat over dark dick( aka destoryer)

Been playing around with bird man in my current list to recycle waters + diva and allows for some pretty degenerate combos.
I think it should see merit or be a topic of discussion.

Also pepe match up is literally only match up that's legit really 50/50 ( I could be wrong ) but don't know whether to push through maxx c if I make a huge board or to just pray they don't have the degenerate nuts , but that's just my 2 cents atm

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The more I play this deck the more I prefer keeping the Mermails out. Abyssgunde is dead half the time because I never get the combos with it and is extra susceptible to Maxx. Teus has nothing truly good to search, Pike is an underwhelming normal summon compared to Neptabyss or Diva, and the Mermail engine just makes the deck even more inconsistent to me.

I'm having more success with 9 hand traps + inf Waters + Treacherous Trap Hole. Not to be more results oriented mind you, but Atlanteans with Undine and Megalo seems way more consistent. You get muddled combo pieces which are vulnerable to backrow with Mermail, but your gameplan is still the same with both decks: use Neptabyss to win.

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If I'm not mistaken, can't you use Moulin's effect more than once per turn by bouncing it via Dewloren?

I vaguely remember that being legal when the deck was first released that you could do something similar but I don't remember. If that is the case, I think at the cost of your next BP, knocking out 4 cih from your opponent with dudeloren seems pretty good.

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One of the things I'd like to point out now that the format is a bit more defined, @marcuthekid congratz on your top BTW.

Double dweller in testing has been very clutch tbh, against most meta decks its still a blow out and the 500atk increase helps us beat over dark dick( aka destoryer)

Been playing around with bird man in my current list to recycle waters + diva and allows for some pretty degenerate combos.
I think it should see merit or be a topic of discussion.

Also pepe match up is literally only match up that's legit really 50/50 ( I could be wrong ) but don't know whether to push through maxx c if I make a huge board or to just pray they don't have the degenerate nuts , but that's just my 2 cents atm

Always push it's best not to play the game with them if you don't have too

Undine+double summon=diva this helps the deck go 1st even undine instant is good with hand traps because you dump dragoons make shark wall up get two searchs and just kill them next turn it's real neat

I wanted to test reasoning but never got around to it seems like it could also be good

I feel like if you're going the route of maxing out on handtraps, then reasoning is most definitely not the way to go. I could see it being good in theory, but I feel as though the max out on handtraps and try to kill them on your turn just seems 1000x better. I would feel awful if they reasoning'd me, called 1, and I hit a veiler.

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One of the things I'd like to point out now that the format is a bit more defined, @marcuthekid congratz on your top BTW.

Double dweller in testing has been very clutch tbh, against most meta decks its still a blow out and the 500atk increase helps us beat over dark dick( aka destoryer)

Been playing around with bird man in my current list to recycle waters + diva and allows for some pretty degenerate combos.
I think it should see merit or be a topic of discussion.

Also pepe match up is literally only match up that's legit really 50/50 ( I could be wrong ) but don't know whether to push through maxx c if I make a huge board or to just pray they don't have the degenerate nuts , but that's just my 2 cents atm

Always push it's best not to play the game with them if you don't have too

@marcus yes I've been seeing that , honestly this deck is one of the underrated in the format IMO its one of the few decks that can start your op at 2-4 cards while you still have retained advantage.

BTW reasoning is complete ass here , its more fit for a deck like kozmo or majespecters .

@nb69 as well Marcus , I do completely agree with the mermails being lack luster, only lose most of your games when you draw more mermails then atlanteans . but that's really comes down to either

A- player preference
B- or time for mermails to evolve for the 5th time to keep up with the meta.

Plus honestly for ycs atl I don't agree with pepe as best choice , you straight up lose to degenerate shit like nat beast + pleadies (or traptrix or evilswarm nightmare)

Also if we play floodgates because twin twister is a card , how do you like the idea of playing huge revolution is over? Its applications are actually just pretty insane since it can blow out your op from a power play.

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If I'm not mistaken, can't you use Moulin's effect more than once per turn by bouncing it via Dewloren?

I vaguely remember that being legal when the deck was first released that you could do something similar but I don't remember. If that is the case, I think at the cost of your next BP, knocking out 4 cih from your opponent with dudeloren seems pretty good.

I'm pretty sure I'm wrong on that though.

yea you have no idea how disappointed i was to learn that after building and playing a frog deck built to use swap frog to bounce moulin and drop 4 cards a turn